Behavioral Health Professionals Embracing Telehealth as Patients Social Distance

Editor’s note: This episode of the MGMA Insights podcast continues a series focused on COVID-19 and its effects on healthcare professionals and their patients. Keep up with the latest updates by visiting the MGMA COVID-19 Action Center at www.MGMA.com/covid. You can also connect with fellow members and healthcare peers at www.community.mgma.com. In this episode, we’re joined by Shane Lunsford, MBA, CCT, CST, administrative director; Valerie Krall, MA, LCMHC, director, behavioral medicine; and Allison McCarty, MSW, LCSW, behavioral health care manager – all with Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC, www.mahec.net) in Ashville, North Carolina. The COVID-19 crisis has forced the trio to navigate a quick transition to telehealth and to find new ways to manage the mental health of their patients, as well as their own. “As therapists, we’re not only trying to manage our own emotions around what is happening, but we’re holding the emotions of all of our clients right now that we care for a lot.” – Allison McCarty Thanks to nThrive for sponsoring this episode. For more information on how nThrive is helping organizations drill into their physician data and achieve substantial results, visit www.nThrive.com. MGMA Insights is presented by Decklan McGee, Rob Ketcham and Daniel Williams. This episode is sponsored by ModMed. Every denied claim costs time and money to rework — for care you’ve already delivered. While payers sharpen their own AI tools, ModMed RCM Services pairs seasoned billing specialists with AI designed to help flag claims at risk before they go out the door, so your team can fix issues upfront instead of appealing after the fact. Learn more here.